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Associated Press

The island of cats has a cat problem.
Officials in Cyprus, a small island nation in the eastern corner of the Mediterranean, estimate there is roughly one feral cat for every one of its 1 million inhabitants, though activists contend the actual population is hundreds of thousands higher.
In late September, the island’s parliamentary committee on the environment was told that an existing sterilisation programme was not enough to contain the burgeoning cat population.
“It’s a good programme, but it needs to expand,” said Environment Commissioner Antonia Theodosiou, who noted that the programme conducts only about 2,000 sterilisations annually on a budget of just €100,000 (US$116,000).
While there was no official comparative data, Theodosiou said Cyprus has gained a reputation for having a cat population that is exceptionally large relative to its human inhabitants.

Change might be on the way, but funding alone will not solve the island’s cat problem.
Appearing to heed calls for more funding, Environment Minister Maria Panayiotou announced on October 4 that the government would raise cat sterilisation funding to €300,000 annually. The decision was hailed as a significant step forward.
However, Charalambos Theopemptou, chairman of the Parliamentary Environment Committee, warned against relying solely on money.
“There has to be a plan,” he said. “We can’t just go ahead with sterilisations without having a plan.”
Given cats’ predatory nature, a large feral population not only has the potential to wreak havoc with the island’s ecosystem, but could also cause suffering among themselves as they roam the streets in search of food and shelter.

Cyprus has a long history as a cat-loving nation, where cat food dispensers and clusters of tiny cat houses are a regular sight along popular footpaths.
Two decades ago, French archaeologists unearthed what they believed to be the earliest evidence of a domesticated cat in a 9,500-year-old Neolithic village. They found the bones of a cat close to the skeletal remains of a human, suggesting that they were buried together.
Adding to this long history of human-feline connection is the fourth-century legend of Saint Helen, who, after finding the True Cross in the Holy Lands, brought over a couple of boatloads of cats to deal with a snake infestation. A monastery that serves as a feline safe haven, St Nicholas of the Cats, still exists today.
With tourism a key economic driver for Cyprus, the island’s cats have become a major attraction for the holidaymakers who descend on the island. The well-fed felines are a common sight, often seen feasting on leftovers provided by visitors at the many restaurants where they hang out.
Demetris Epaminondas, acting president of the Pancyprian Veterinary Association, attributes the exploding population to unchecked breeding, particularly in high-concentration urban areas, and to more kittens surviving birth, thanks to ordinary folks offering care.

The current government-run programme disburses its budget to municipalities, which in turn fund private veterinarians to sterilise cats brought in by animal conservation groups.
Authorities acknowledge the programme is ineffective.
The country’s state-run Veterinary Services, which is in charge of sterilisations, conceded that the programme’s capabilities are “lesser than the real need”. To reassess where available funding could be redistributed, it has asked local government authorities to submit reports on locations with large feral cat concentrations.
Elias Demetriou, who runs the private sanctuary Friends of Larnaca Cats, said tripling sterilisation funds will not have the desired effect unless conservationist groups with the know-how are recruited to round up cats for sterilisation.
Eleni Loizidou, head of Cat Alert, a volunteer organisation caring for strays in Cyprus’ capital of Nicosia, said her organisation’s recent efforts to round up 397 feral cats from the city centre were a mere drop in the ocean, and that too few females are being sterilised – partly because of the difficulty in trapping feral cats.

Epaminondas said the cat population in Cyprus could be brought under control in as few as four years. This would be possible, he said, if authorities cobbled together a unified sterilisation plan that would put private clinics at the forefront of the effort by offering free-of-charge neutering without all the red tape that complicates the process.
“People will be more motivated to get cats neutered if we make it easier for them to do so,” he said.
His association has proposed a plan that would identify major cat concentration centres where authorities could round them up and take them for sterilisation at designated vets. The initiative includes the creation of a smartphone application that would allow anyone to help authorities locate such large cat concentrations.
The state can avoid bearing the full cost of the programme by setting up a fund where people and businesses can donate, according to Epaminondas. The minister’s announcement about tripling the sterilisation budget, he said, could act as a significant incentive for more corporate donations.
The cost of sterilising a female feral cat in Cyprus is €55, which goes up to €120 for domesticated cats brought in by owners, as they receive more specialised care.
Theodosiou, the environment commissioner, said her staff have worked on a long-term strategy that would bring together government, conservationists and volunteers to establish a precise cat population count and pave the way for a mass sterilisation programme. The plan would also legalise private cat sanctuaries.
“There are solutions,” Loizidou said.


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Cyprus, the island of cats, has a major cat problem as feral felines outnumber people

A woman holds a cat at a park in Nicosia, Cyprus, on October 6, 2025. Cyprus is grappling with soaring stray cat numbers. Photo: AP

A cat at a park in Nicosia, Cyprus. Photo: AP

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A cat watches a woman walk by in Nicosia. Photo: AP

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Lifestyle

Officials estimate there is roughly one feral cat for each of Cyprus’ residents, though activists say the actual population is much higher


Officials estimate there is roughly one feral cat for each of Cyprus’ residents, though activists say the actual population is much higher.


Cyprus

Environment

Tourism

Cyprus, the island of cats, has a major cat problem as feral felines outnumber people

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Officials estimate there is roughly one feral cat for each of Cyprus’ residents, though activists say the actual population is much higher

Officials estimate there is roughly one feral cat for each of Cyprus’ residents, though activists say the actual population is much higher